Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1887-06-17
pATRoNYMIo suRNAMEs.

Many and varied as are the sources
of our language, they can all be traced
in our system of family names, which
have come, like the people who bear
them, from different races of men. The
most numerous class of all consists OF
such as are called patronymics; that is,
such names as are formed from the
fathers baptismal name This plan
is still followed in parts of Norway and
Sweden, and, we believe, universally in
Russia. 1t may be found in use among
immigrants from those countries who
have settled in the Northwest. To IL
lustrato this method of naming, we
will suppose that John Richardson, for
instance, has n son whom he christcns
under the name of Peter. This child
grows up to manhood, and bears the
name of Peter johnson.
We will now suppose that Peter in
his generation has n son, to whom he
gives the name Frederick. This one in
turn becomes Frederick Peterson. Ii
would be wrong for him to take the
name johnson, for he is Johns grand
son. OF course his sons, in their turn,
will be Frcdcricksons, and so on,
changing the family namc with every
generation.
How were the girls named? In the
same simple and truthful manner. But,
as they did not found families, their
names are less familiar in literature.
| remember Swedish girl coming
direct from her home in the old country
to enter an American homo in Illinois.
Her clothing was marked in thread,
with stitches of regular eXactnoss, and
the broad white strings of her apron in
troduccd the maiden to all as "Anna
Jacobs Dattar."
Such a manner of naming can not be
practiccd among people who are chang
ing their domicilc and their occupation
so frequently rs our people are. When
inhcritanccs pass by descent, it would
be attended with constant difficulties. 1t
was, no doubt, for avoiding this trouble
in tracing the descent of property,
that the practice of changing the family
name was given up in Englandi and it
was just at this point that this numcr-
ous class of surnamcs became fixed.
Naturally, the change was gradual, and
we know that it was not complete at
the beginning of the fifteenth century,
for there was marriage license issued
March 80, 1902, to "Richard johnson,
son of John Richardson, of Fishlake. :"
1t would linger longest in company
with other simple country ways.
Not only would surnames be formed
upon the proper form of the baptismal
name, but also upon any nickname be-
longing to it, or any foreign way of
spelling. jackson is almost rs COM
mon as johnson. Hanson is the Dan
ish form of the same. Jansen is from
Norway, and Jensen is from the Meth
erlands. Jones stands for Johns, so
that Tom Jones is simply Johns Tom.
jenkins is diminutivc of John, and
equivalent to johnson. Littlcjohn is
more pronounced. jerks comes in with
Jones. These are all known as Saxon
forms. The Normans brought in their
more aristocratic Pitz-John, the pre-
else equivalent of Johnson.
But these do not by any means ex-
hnust the resources of this one name.
Welsh blood has mingled with the En-
glish, and at the same time, Welsh
names have been adopted. Their form
of John is Evan, so that Evans is the
equivalent of Jones or johnson. They
give us still another form of the name.
The prefix ap in Welsh has the same
meaning rs the atliX son in English,
This prefix combines with the name, so
that ap-Evan becomes Bcvan as sur
name equivalent to johnson. The Latin
form of John, Johannes, is still used in
some college catalogues, and in certain
limited circles. From this we have the
patronymic Johanson, brought here
often from Scandinavia, Upiohn seems
to be of Flemish origin, as if for oop-
John, which would be the same in eff
feet rs Jones. 1t will occur to the
reader that at the time family names
were becoming established in England
there was chance that hundreds of
of families should take the same name,
without there being the slightest rela-
tionship among them. Youths COM
panton.